Written Answers Tuesday 28 November 2006

Scottish Executive

Alcohol Misuse

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many binge drinkers there were in each of the last 10 years, broken down by (a) age, (b) gender and (c) area.

Lewis Macdonald: Binge drinking is defined in the Executive’s Plan for Action on Alcohol Problems as "drinking an excessive amount on any one occasion". The Scottish Health Survey defines binge drinking for adults as drinking more than twice the recommended daily benchmark on a person’s heaviest drinking day (more than eight units for men and more than six units for women). For young people under 16, consumption of five or more drinks on a single occasion has been used as a measure of binge drinking.

  Adults

  Table 1.9 of the Scottish Health Survey report, volume 2, provides information on units consumed by adults on the heaviest drinking day in the past week, broken down by age and gender for 1998 and 2003. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/76169/0019729.pdf

  Analysis of the Scottish Health Survey by NHS board area is available on the Scottish Executive website via the following link http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/11/25145024/50256.

  The table entitled Daily Drinking provides similar information for units consumed by men and women on the heaviest drinking day in the past week. Due to the small sample sizes involved, it is not possible to break this information down by age.

  Young People

  Information on the drinking habits of young people is provided by the Scottish Schools Adolescent Lifestyle and Substance use Survey (SALSUS). A question on consumption of five or more drinks on a single occasion was first included in 2002.

  Table 3.17, provides information on the frequency of drinking five or more drinks on the same occasion in the last 30 days, by age and gender for 2002 and 2004.

  http://www.drugmisuse.isdscotland.org/publications/local/SALSUS_2004full.pdf.

  The most recent breakdown of this information at NHS board level is for 2002:

  http://www.drugmisuse.isdscotland.org/publications/abstracts/salsusdocs_hb.htm.

Concessionary Travel

Helen Eadie (Dunfermline East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance is given to local authorities on the operation of the national concessionary travel scheme.

Tavish Scott: Transport Scotland issued guidance notes to local authorities and Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (who act on behalf of the 12 Strathclyde local authorities) giving details of the eligibility criteria, the application process and the benefits of the scheme. Transport Scotland officials are readily available to offer information, guidance and support to local authorities.

  In addition, information leaflets produced by Transport Scotland have been distributed to all local authorities for the benefit of staff and their customers.

Concessionary Travel

Helen Eadie (Dunfermline East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance is given to local authorities on assessing and validating bus operators’ returns in respect of the use of their services by concessionary travel card holders.

Tavish Scott: Since the introduction of the Scotland-wide Free Bus Concession Travel Scheme for Older and Disabled People on 1 April 2006, the responsibility of assessing and validating all bus operators’ claims for reimbursement lies with Transport Scotland and not the local authorities. The vast majority of claims are received direct from the bus operators although some are submitted to us via their local authorities.

Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2003

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) initial set up and (b) annual costs to (i) the Executive, (ii) local authorities, (iii) other public sector organisations or bodies and (iv) other individuals, organisations and bodies of the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2003 were projected to be in the Financial Memorandum to the bill and what the actual (1) initial set up costs were and (2) annual costs have been in each year since the act came into force, in each category.

Cathy Jamieson: The Standing Orders of the Scottish Parliament require all Executive Bills on introduction to be accompanied by a Financial Memorandum which sets out the best estimates of the administrative, compliance and other costs to which the provisions of the bill would give rise, best estimates of the timescales over which such costs would be expected to arise, and an indication of the margins of uncertainty in such estimates. The Financial Memorandum must distinguish separately such costs as would fall upon (a) the Scottish Administration, (b) local authorities and (c) other bodies, individuals and businesses. These memoranda are freely available on the Scottish Parliament’s website.

  By way of comparable information actual initial set up costs and annual costs for the year 2005-06 in the same categories as the Financial Memorandum are as follows:

  

 Actual


 Executive
 Local Authorities
 Other


 Set Up
 Annual
 Set Up
 Annual
 Set Up
 Annual


£50,000
£2,113,000
 Nil
 Nil
 Minimal
 Minimal

Culture

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the budget for implementing its creative industries strategy has been in each of the last three years, also showing (a) actual spend and (b) outcomes.

Patricia Ferguson: The Executive has not hitherto had a stand-alone strategy for the creative industries; instead we have sought to help the sector through policy initiatives and funding provided by the enterprise agencies and the Scottish Arts Council (SAC). In the period 2001-02 to 2005-06, the budget allocated to the Digital Media and Creative Industries cluster by the Scottish Enterprise Board has been £26 million, which included a large element of capital for infrastructure projects. SAC’s budget for its Creative Industries Action Plan between 2003-04 and 2006-07 was £877,500. In addition, SAC also recently awarded The Lighthouse £74,470 towards the cost of developments to enhance access, circulation and the visitor experience on the ground floor.

  Our policies towards the sector are encompassed in Scotland’s Culture, our response to the Cultural Review. In that document, I signalled our intention to develop a new strategy to guide the support which will be given to the creative industries sector in future by Creative Scotland once it is set up. As part of that work, we will assess the extent to which there are gaps in support and whether the services could be provided more effectively.

Economy

Richard Lochhead (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding it intends to make available for the Moray 2020 economic strategy and whether it will detail the funding streams to be made available.

Nicol Stephen: The Moray 2020 Strategy is being taken forward by local partners, including Highlands and Islands Enterprise Moray and Highlands and Islands Enterprise. The enterprise network’s funding contribution to the strategy is an operational matter for Highlands and Islands Enterprise.

Education (Graduate Endowment and Student Support) Scotland Act 2001

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) initial set up and (b) annual costs to (i) the Executive, (ii) local authorities, (iii) other public sector organisations or bodies and (iv) other individuals, organisations and bodies of the Education (Graduate Endowment and Student Support) (Scotland) Act 2001 were projected to be in the Financial Memorandum to the bill and what the actual (1) initial set up costs were and (2) annual costs have been in each year since the act came into force, in each category.

Nicol Stephen: The Standing Orders of the Scottish Parliament require all Executive Bills on introduction to be accompanied by a Financial Memorandum which sets out the best estimates of the administrative, compliance and other costs to which the provisions of the bill would give rise, best estimates of the timescales over which such costs would be expected to arise, and an indication of the margins of uncertainty in such estimates. The Financial Memorandum must distinguish separately such costs as would fall upon (a) the Scottish administration, (b) local authorities and (c) other bodies, individuals and businesses. These memoranda are freely available on the Parliament’s website.

  By way of comparable information actual initial set up costs and annual costs for the year 2005-06 in the same categories as the Financial Memoranda is as follows.

  

 Actual


 Executive
 Local Authorities
 Other


 Set Up
 Annual
 Set Up
 Annual
 Set Up
 Annual


£1,234,063
£156,739
 NIL
 NIL
 NIL
 NIL

Education and Training (Scotland) Act 2000

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) initial set up and (b) annual costs to (i) the Executive, (ii) local authorities, (iii) other public sector organisations or bodies and (iv) other individuals, organisations and bodies of the Education and Training (Scotland) Act 2000 were projected to be in the Financial Memorandum to the bill and what the actual (1) initial set up costs were and (2) annual costs have been in each year since the act came into force, in each category.

Nicol Stephen: The Standing Orders of the Scottish Parliament require all Executive Bills on introduction to be accompanied by a Financial Memorandum which sets out the best estimates of the administrative, compliance and other costs to which the provisions of the bill would give rise, best estimates of the timescales over which such costs would be expected to arise, and an indication of the margins of uncertainty in such estimates. The Financial Memorandum must distinguish separately such costs as would fall upon (a) the Scottish Administration, (b) local authorities and (c) other bodies, individuals and businesses. These memoranda are freely available on the Scottish Parliament's website.

  By way of comparable information the figures in the following table represent the set up costs for the Students Awards Agency for Scotland and the Scottish University for Industry and the annual costs for both in 2005-06.

  

 Actual


 Executive
 Local Authorities
 Other


 Set up
 Annual
 Set Up
 Annual
 Set Up
 Annual


£3,121,000
£2,031,000
 NIL
 NIL
£2,267,000
£3,389,000

Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005

Ms Maureen Watt (North East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much money it has ring-fenced to promote awareness among emergency staff of the provisions of the Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005.

Mr Tom McCabe: The Executive is working with the STUC to tackle violence against all workers serving the public. We are now in the third year of an awareness campaign. Its objectives are to raise awareness of the issue, emphasise that violence, whether physical or verbal, against those who serve the public is unacceptable, encourage workers to report any incidents and employers to put in place systems to assess and address these issues. The campaign website and advice line will refer enquirers to guidance and advice on best practice. The Executive has provided £516,000 for this programme. http://www.infoscotland.com/violenceatwork .

Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005

Ms Maureen Watt (North East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has received with regard to the implementation of the Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005.

Mr Tom McCabe: The Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005 came into force on 9 May 2005. The most recently available figures indicate that 392 charges have so far been prosecuted under the act. The Executive has received no recent formal representations with regard to the implementation of the act.

Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005

Ms Maureen Watt (North East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment has been undertaken of the implementation of the Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005.

Mr Tom McCabe: The Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005 came into force on 9 May 2005. The latest available figures indicate that 77% of the 249 prosecutions so far completed have resulted in a conviction. No formal assessment has so far been undertaken of the implementation of the act.

Employment

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many economically inactive people there are in (a) Angus and (b) Aberdeenshire and what proportion of the 15 to 65-year-old population of each area they represent.

Nicol Stephen: The following table shows the estimate of the number of economically inactive people aged 16 to 65 and the proportion of 16 to 65-year-olds who are economically inactive in Angus and Aberdeenshire. The estimates are based on a sample survey, and as such, are subject to some sampling error.

  The official economic inactivity figures in the UK are based on those of working age which consist of males aged 16 to 64 and females aged 16 to 59. The economic inactivity rates for the working age group for Angus and Aberdeenshire in 2005 were 18.8% and 16.0% respectively.

  Table 1 – Economically inactive people in Angus and Aberdeenshire aged 16 to 65, 2005

  

 
 Angus
 Aberdeenshire


 Year
 Level
 Proportion
 Level
 Proportion


 2005
 15,000
 21.4%
 29,000
 18.8%



  Source: Annual Population Survey 2005.

  Note: 1. Estimates are rounded to the nearest thousand.

Employment

Tommy Sheridan (Glasgow) (Sol): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average wage is in Scotland and how many households have (a) one working adult, (b) two working adults, (c) three working adults and (d) more than three working adults, also expressed as a percentage of all households with working adults and indicating how many of those working adults earn more than the average wage.

Nicol Stephen: The preferred source for earnings estimates is the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), which is carried out by the Office for National Statistics.

  The median gross weekly pay for full-time employees, excluding overtime, in Scotland in 2006 was £403.60. The median is the recommended measure of average earnings as opposed to the mean.

  The following table shows the number of households with one, two, three or more than three working adults. The number of households are also expressed as a proportion of total households with at least one working adult.

  By definition the proportion of adults earning over the median wage is 50%. Therefore the best estimate for the number of people earning over the median wage is 1,169,000.

  Table 1 Number of Households by Number of People in Employment

  

 Number of People in Employment
 Number of Households
 Percentage of Households


 1 Adult
 695,000
 48.5%


 2 Adults
 600,000
 41.9%


 3 Adults
 106,000
 7.4%


 More than 3
 30,000
 2.1%



  Source: Annual Population Survey 2005.

  Note: 1. Data are rounded to the nearest thousand.

Further and Higher Education

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many higher education students have graduated in each year since 1999.

Nicol Stephen: The number of graduates from higher education courses at Scottish institutions is shown in the following table. Full details on the number of graduations is published annually on the internet at www.scotland.gov.uk/llstatistics .

  Number of Graduates from Higher Education Courses in Scotland:

  1999-2000 to 2004-05

  

 Year
 Total Number of Graduates


 1999-2000
 68,385


 2000-01
 65,065


 2001-02
 63,430


 2002-03
 63,670


 2003-04
 65,720


 2004-05
 69,885



  Sources: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) and Scottish Funding Council (SFC).

  Note:

  1. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest five to protect confidentiality.

  2. Numbers include higher education students graduating from Scottish Higher Education Institutions or Scottish Further Education Colleges.

  The data above includes those graduating at sub degree, degree or postgraduate level in the given academic year. During the reporting period measures were taken to improve the quality of the information received from institutions. This particularly affects the years prior to 2002-03 and may have influenced the year on year changes shown, especially in the early part of the reporting period.

Further and Higher Education

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive which projects were undertaken to improve higher and further education and how much money was allocated for higher or further education in the (a) Argyll and Bute and (b) West Dunbartonshire local authority area in each year since 1999.

Nicol Stephen: The Scottish Funding Council for Further and Higher Education is responsible for issues relating to the funding of colleges and higher education institutions in Scotland. I have asked the Chair of the Funding Council to respond directly.

Further and Higher Education

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the drop-out rate was for medical courses at Scottish educational establishments in each year since 1997, broken down by establishment.

Nicol Stephen: This information is not held centrally.

Further and Higher Education

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-28467 by Nicol Stephen on 18 October 2006, what percentage of Scots-domiciled graduates the figures contained in the answer represent in each case.

Nicol Stephen: The figures are: Scottish domiciled graduates from full-time courses from Scottish higher education institutions (HEIs) and colleges that found permanent employment in Scotland as a percentage of all graduates from full-time courses from Scottish HEIs and colleges that found permanent employment in Scotland – 92% in 2004-05 and 95% in 1999-2000. The other figures given in my previous answer are already for Scottish domiciled graduates. A full range of statistics on graduates and their destinations is published at www.scotland.gov.uk/llstatistics .

Further and Higher Education

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to make additional investment to maintain the provision of science and engineering subjects at universities and colleges, in light of reports that the Higher Education Funding Council for England has announced an additional £75 million funding for this purpose at tertiary education institutions in England.

Nicol Stephen: The additional allocation just announced by the Higher Education Funding Council for England is £25 million per year over the next three years. This has been made to sustain capacity in some science departments which are vulnerable because of low student demand.

  The allocation of funding to Scotland’s colleges and universities is a matter for the Scottish Funding Council (SFC). Their assessment is that the number of students studying science in Scottish universities is currently rising with provisional figures showing an increase in 2005-06 of 4% on the previous year. Average funding per science student, at £7,580, is already significantly higher than the £6,326 in England. Following the record additional allocations to the SFC in the last Spending Review, the SFC has also made very significant investments in strategic areas of science research, such as £59 million for pooling in Physics, Chemistry, Engineering and Geosciences. These are already helping to strengthen teaching as well as research capacity, and helping to attract potential students. The SFC therefore have no plans to provide additional funding to support particular departments. However, the SFC is currently undertaking a review of its teaching funding methodologies, which will include examining how closely funding relates to the costs of delivery.

  Ensuring we have enough people studying science to enable the needs of the country to be met is a key aspect of our science and innovation strategy. We are planning to publish a study of the available data in this area in the next few months. We are also currently consulting on the science and innovation strategy and plan to update it next year.

Further and Higher Education (Scotland) Act 2005

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) initial set up and (b) annual costs to (i) the Executive, (ii) local authorities, (iii) other public sector organisations or bodies and (iv) other individuals, organisations and bodies of the Further and Higher Education (Scotland) Act 2005 were projected to be in the Financial Memorandum accompanying the bill and what the actual (1) initial set up costs were and (2) annual costs have been in each year since the act came into force, in each category.

Nicol Stephen: The Financial Memorandum to the bill is available on the Parliament's website. The only significant costs incurred as result of the act related to the extension of the remit of the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman. These costs, which were funded by the Scottish Executive, amounted to £50,000 during 2005-06.

Genetically Modified Food

Rob Gibson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-28653 by Lewis Macdonald on 24 October 2006, why the Food Standards Agency has not instructed local authorities to test for unauthorised LL601 rice in products already on the market, including on supermarket shelves, in Scotland.

Lewis Macdonald: I am informed by the Food Standards Agency that the issues raised in this question are currently subject to proceedings for judicial review.

  I refer the member to Rule 7.5.1 of the Standing Orders which states "A member may not in the proceedings of the Parliament refer to any matter in relation to which legal proceedings are active except to the extent permitted by the Presiding Officer."

Genetically Modified Food

Rob Gibson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list the Scottish ports through which maize, soya, rice, canola/oilseed rape and cotton seed products are imported, showing the quantities of each product imported through these ports in (a) 2003, (b) 2004 and (c) 2005.

Ross Finnie: The following tables provide information on imports of products related to maize, soya, rice and canola/oilseed rape received annually from non-EU countries and landed at Scottish ports. There were no imports of cotton seed products during this period. The UK does not record port information for goods moving within the EU.

  2003

  

 Port
 Commodity
 Quantity (kg)


 Dundee (inc Perth)
 Soya and Soya products
 5,340,384


 Dundee (inc Perth)
 Rape and Rape products
 1,540,204


 Fraserburgh
 Soya and Soya products
 1,249,950


 Glasgow
 Soya and Soya products
 160,339,882


 Glasgow Airport
 Soya and Soya products
 54


 Grangemouth
 Rice and Rice products
 26,400


 Grangemouth
 Soya and Soya products
 12,390


 Greenock
 Soya and Soya products
 1,893,500


 Leith (inc Granton)
 Soya and Soya products
 660,000


 Montrose
 Rape and Rape products
 209,990



  2004

  

 Port
 Commodity
 Quantity (kg)


 Dundee (inc Perth)
 Soya and Soya products
 13,452,760


 Glasgow
 Maize and Maize products
 5,358,500


 Glasgow
 Soya and Soya products
 112,815,628


 Grangemouth
 Rice and Rice products
 147,550


 Grangemouth
 Soya and Soya products
 72,212


 Leith (inc Granton)
 Soya and Soya products
 10,125,010


 Prestwick Airport
 Rape and Rape products
 500



  2005

  

 Port
 Commodity
 Quantity (kg)


 Dundee (inc Perth)
 Soya and Soya products
 850,000


 Glasgow
 Soya and Soya products
 192,859,335


 Glasgow Airport
 Soya and Soya products
 200


 Grangemouth
 Rice and Rice products
 284,585


 Grangemouth
 Soya and Soya products
 36,764


 Leith (inc Granton)
 Soya and Soya products
 1,859,880

Health

Mr Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what the latest estimate is of the level of inappropriate pathology testing and its annual cost to the NHS.

Mr Andy Kerr: Pathology testing is carried out when clinicians determine that this is necessary in making a diagnosis, and for the benefit of patients. There is no information available centrally that would enable the Scottish Executive to assess the level of inappropriate pathology testing or its annual cost to the NHS.

Health

Mr Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what the latest estimate is of the annual cost of pathology testing carried out in NHS primary care services.

Mr Andy Kerr: I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-29836 on 28 November 2006. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

  In the financial year 2005-06, £42.9 million was spent on pathology laboratory services provided by Scottish hospitals. This includes services provided to all parts of NHSScotland. It is not possible to identify the proportion of expenditure related to work originating from primary care services alone.

Health

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) diagnosis and (b) mortality rate was for (i) chronic lung disease, (ii) coronary heart disease and (iii) cancer in each electoral ward in each parliamentary constituency in each of the last 15 years.

Mr Andy Kerr: The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

  Alternative information on health and mortality indicators at low level geographies can be found at the Scottish Neighbourhood Statistics website www.sns.gov.uk and via the Community Profiles section of the Scottish Public Health Observatory (SCOTPHO) website www.scotpho.org.uk.

Hepatitis

Ms Rosemary Byrne (South of Scotland) (Sol): To ask the Scottish Executive what funding has been provided to each NHS board for harm reduction and, in particular, needle exchange under the Executive’s hepatitis C action plan.

Mr Andy Kerr: Funding of £4 million over two financial years has been allocated to assist NHS boards in supporting the actions outlined in the Hepatitis C Action Plan for Scotland as detailed as follows:

  

 NHS Ayr and Arran
£140,952 


 NHS Borders
£20,866 


 NHS Dumfries and Galloway
£59,050


 NHS Fife
£81,410 


 NHS Forth Valley 
£97,905


 NHS Grampian
£223,346


 NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde
£696,804


 NHS Highland
£84,596


 NHS Lanarkshire
£176,110


 NHS Lothian
£275,154


 NHS Orkney
£2,889


 NHS Shetland
£4,437


 NHS Tayside
£129,020


 NHS Western Isles
£2,989


 State Hospital 
£4,472


 Health Board Total
£2,000,000 



  These actions include measures aimed at harm reduction, improving the accessibility of testing services, actions to identify and offer hepatitis C testing to those who are at risk and to develop or improve local community-based treatment, care and support services for people who have been diagnosed with hepatitis C. Information about how much each NHS board will spend on needle exchanges is not yet available centrally. NHS boards will report to the Scottish Executive on their spending of the Hepatitis C Action Plan funding by March 2007.

  In addition to the funding allocated for the Hepatitis C Action Plan, the Scottish Executive has allocated over £8.6 million in 2006-07 to NHS boards for blood-borne virus prevention work. These funds are used in a number of ways, including the provision of awareness raising, publicity materials highlighting the risks of unsafe sexual practices and the provision of needle exchange facilities to prevent the spread of bloodborne viruses through the sharing of dirty injecting equipment.

Hospital Acquired Infection

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the estimated cost to the NHS was of hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) in each of the last five years.

Mr Andy Kerr: This information is not held centrally.

  The ministerial healthcare associated infection task force has commissioned a detailed survey of HAIs (the national point prevalence survey), which will include information on financial and resource implications based on Scottish data for the first time. The report is due for publication in mid 2007.

Income

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the median gross hourly and weekly pay has been of full-time employees in Aberdeenshire in each of the last three years, broken down by gender.

Nicol Stephen: The preferred source for earnings estimates is the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), which is carried out by the Office for National Statistics.

  The following table shows the median gross hourly pay and median gross weekly pay for males and females for the last three years in Aberdeenshire.

  Table 1 – Median Gross Hourly Pay in Aberdeenshire, 2004-2006

  

 
 Hourly Pay
 Weekly Pay


 
 2004
 2005
 2006
 2004
 2005
 2006


 Males
 9.24
 9.07
 11.66
 422.1
 421.6
 488.6


 Females
 8.44
 8.29
 8.57
 335.3
 317.4
 331.5


 Both
 8.94
 8.96
 9.96
 386.8
 382.5
 435.6



  Source: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings.

  Notes:

  1. The estimates are based on the pay excluding overtime for employees on adult rates whose pay for the survey pay-period was not affected by absence.

  2. The estimates are based on a sample survey, and as such, are subject to sampling error.

  3. Hourly rates of pay have been rounded to the nearest pence.

  4. Weekly rates of pay have been rounded to the nearest 10 pence.

  5. Rates are based on work based earnings.

Income

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) children, (b) disabled children and (c) children from single parent families lived in poverty in each year since 1992, broken down by local authority area.

Malcolm Chisholm: Provided in the following tables are estimates of children living in absolute and relative low income for Scotland, based on the Department for Work and Pensions’ Family Resources Survey. 1994-95 is the first year that estimates are available. Local authority estimates are not available. All estimates are based on equivalised net disposable household income before and after housing costs. Identification of trends must be based on data for several years.

  Part a:

  Tables 1 and 2 contain estimates of children living in absolute and relative low income households.

  Table 1: Children in Absolute Low Income (Below 60% of GB Median) in Scottish Households

  

 
 Children


 Before Housing Costs
 After Housing Costs


 %
 (000)
 %
 (000)


 1994-95
 28
 310
 31
 340


 1995-96
 29
 320
 34
 370


 1996-97
 29
 320
 33
 370


 1997-98
 27
 300
 30
 330


 1998-99
 25
 270
 29
 310


 1999-2000
 22
 230
 26
 280


 2000-01
 18
 190
 21
 220


 2001-02
 14
 150
 17
 170


 2002-03
 13
 130
 16
 170


 2003-04
 11
 110
 15
 160


 2004-05
 10
 100
 13
 130



  Source: Households Below Average Income, Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

  Table 2: Children in Relative Low Income (Below 60% of the GB Median) in Scottish Households

  

 
 Children


 Before Housing Costs
 After Housing Costs


 %
 (000)
 %
 (000)


 1994-95
 26
 280
 28
 300


 1995-96
 26
 290
 32
 350


 1996-97
 29
 320
 33
 370


 1997-98
 29
 310
 30
 330


 1998-99
 27
 290
 30
 320


 1999-2000
 26
 280
 30
 330


 2000-01
 24
 250
 29
 310


 2001-02
 25
 260
 30
 320


 2002-03
 23
 240
 26
 280


 2003-04
 22
 220
 25
 260


 2004-05
 19
 190
 23
 240



  Source: Households Below Average Income, DWP.

  Part b:

  Estimates for disabled children living in low income are not available due to small sample sizes.

  Part c:

  Tables 3 and 4 contain estimates on the number of children living in lone parent families who are living in absolute and relative low income households.

  Table 3: Children in Lone Parent Families Living in Absolute Low Income (Below 60% of the GB median) Households

  

 Year
 Children in Lone Parent Families
 Children in Lone Parent Families


 Before Housing Costs
 After Housing Costs


%
 Number
%
 Number


 (000)
 (000s


 1994-95
 53
 110
 60
 130


 1995-96
 51
 130
 61
 160


 1996-97
 47
 100
 60
 130


 1997-98
 52
 130
 59
 150


 1998-99
 49
 120
 56
 140


 1999-2000
 43
 120
 50
 140


 2000-01
 28
 70
 41
 100


 2001-02
 24
 70
 29
 90


 2002-03
 17
 50
 28
 80


 2003-04
 16
 50
 27
 80


 2004-05
 14
 40
 20
 50



  Source: Households Below Average Income, DWP.

  Table 4: Children in Lone Parent Families Living in Relative Low Income (Below 60% of the GB Median) Households

  

 Year
 Children in Lone Parent Families
 Children in Lone Parent Families


 Before Housing Costs
 After Housing Costs


 %
 Number
 %
 Number


 (000)
 
 (000)


 1994-95
 44
 90
 56
 120


 1995-96
 44
 110
 58
 150


 1996-97
 47
 100
 60
 130


 1997-98
 52
 130
 59
 150


 1998-99
 51
 130
 58
 140


 1999-2000
 48
 130
 59
 160


 2000-01
 46
 120
 59
 150


 2001-02
 41
 130
 51
 160


 2002-03
 38
 110
 47
 130


 2003-04
 40
 120
 47
 140


 2004-05
 31
 80
 40
 110



  Source: Households Below Average Income, DWP.

  Notes:

  The income used in the low income estimates is called equivalised net disposable household income. This equivalised income allows the comparison of living standards between households that vary in size and composition.

  Net disposable household income: Total income from all sources (including Tax Credits) after deductions for income tax, National Insurance contributions, council tax, pension contributions and maintenance payments.

  Housing costs: Rent/mortgage payments, water charges, structural insurance premiums, ground rent and service charges.

  Absolute low income: Individuals living in households whose equivalised income is below 60% of inflation adjusted GB median income in 1996-97. This is a measure of whether those in the lowest income households are seeing their incomes rise in real terms.

  Relative low income: Individuals living in households whose equivalised income is below 60% of the GB median income in the same year. This is a measure of whether those in the lowest income households are keeping pace with the growth of incomes in the economy as a whole.

National Health Service

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients have had their operations cancelled (a) twice, (b) three times, (c) four times and (d) more than four times in each quarter since 1999, broken down by NHS board.

Mr Andy Kerr: The specific information requested is not available centrally.

National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) initial set up and (b) annual costs to (i) the Executive, (ii) local authorities, (iii) other public sector organisations or bodies and (iv) other individuals, organisations and bodies of the National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000 were projected to be in the Financial Memorandum to the bill and what the actual (1) initial set up costs were and (2) annual costs have been in each year since the act came into force, in each category.

Rhona Brankin: The Standing Orders of the Scottish Parliament require all Executive Bills on introduction to be accompanied by a Financial Memorandum which sets out the best estimates of the administrative, compliance and other costs to which the provisions of the bill would give rise, best estimates of the timescales over which such costs would be expected to arise, and an indication of the margins of uncertainty in such estimates. The Financial Memorandum must distinguish separately such costs as would fall upon (a) the Scottish Administration, (b) local authorities and (c) other bodies, individuals and businesses. These memoranda are freely available on the Scottish Parliament’s website.

  By way of comparable information estimates of the actual initial set up costs and annual costs for the year 2005-06 in the same categories as the Financial Memoranda is as follows:

  

 Actual


 Executive
 Local Authorities
 Other


 Set Up
 Annual
 Set Up
 Annual
 Set Up
 Annual


 Minimal
£11.411 million
 Minimal
 Minimal
£180,000
£50,000

Parliamentary Questions

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will provide substantive answers to questions S2W-28479, S2W-28478, S2W-28471, S2W-28470 and S2W-28465 which were lodged on 19 September 2006.

Nicol Stephen: These were answered on 28 November 2006.

Racial Equality

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-28514 by Malcolm Chisholm on 28 September 2006 and its decision to hold a consultation event on 6 December 2006, when it intends to publish the final version of its national strategy and action plan for race equality.

Malcolm Chisholm: We hope to publish the National Race Equality Strategy and Action Plan and the four strategic group plans in the early new year.

Regulation of Investigatory Powers (Scotland) Act 2000

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) initial set up and (b) annual costs to (i) the Executive, (ii) local authorities, (iii) other public sector organisations or bodies and (iv) other individuals, organisations and bodies of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers (Scotland) Act 2000 were projected to be in the Financial Memorandum to the bill and what the actual (1) initial set up costs were and (2) annual costs have been in each year since the act came into force, in each category.

Cathy Jamieson: The Financial Memorandum to the bill is available on the Scottish Parliament’s website. The only quantifiable costs arising from the provisions in the act are those incurred by the Scottish Executive in respect of the increased workload of the Scottish Surveillance Commissioners. By way of comparable information the annual costs for the year 2005-06 were £93,000.

Robin Rigg Offshore Wind Farm (Navigation and Fishing) (Scotland) Act 2003

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) initial set up and (b) annual costs to (i) the Executive, (ii) local authorities, (iii) other public sector organisations or bodies and (iv) other individuals, organisations and bodies of the Robin Rigg Offshore Wind Farm (Navigation and Fishing) (Scotland) Act 2003 were projected to be in the Estimate of Expense and Funding Statement accompanying the bill and what the actual (1) initial set up costs were and (2) annual costs have been in each year since the act came into force, in each category.

Nicol Stephen: An Estimate of Expense and Funding Statement was not required to accompany the bill. The act follows a private bill and the Executive holds no information about any related costs incurred by the promoter of the bill since the act came into force.

Scottish Executive Procurement

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what public relations companies have been employed by it in each year since 1999.

Mr Tom McCabe: The Scottish Executive put in place a contract for Public Relations (PR) on the August 1, 2004. Prior to this, all PR work was sub contracted by the creative advertising agencies on the Scottish Executive contract. The following PR companies have been hired by the Scottish Executive since the August 1, 2004: Barkers, IAS SMARTS (formerly Citigate SMARTS), Consolidated Communications and The Big Partnership.

Statistics

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many statisticians employed by it will work for a new non-departmental public body responsible for statistics to be created under proposals for UK statistics and registration reform.

Mr Tom McCabe: No statisticians employed by the Executive will work for the new non-ministerial department.

Statistics

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many statisticians employed by it work on statistics published by the Office of National Statistics or classified as national statistics.

Mr Tom McCabe: Statisticians work on a mix of National Statistics, administrative information, survey data and data collected by other government bodies (such as Office for National Statistics (ONS)) for publications and to support government policy.

  All statisticians employed by the Scottish Executive will work on National Statistics products at some stage and most will work on statistics published by the ONS.

Statistics

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many statisticians employed by it work only on statistics that are published by the Office of National Statistics or classified as national statistics.

Mr Tom McCabe: Statisticians employed by the Executive use a variety of data sources to provide information to the public and for policy analysis. It is unlikely that any will work only on statistics that are published by the Office for National Statistics or classified as national statistics.

Statistics

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the decision at UK level to separate the census and registration functions of the General Register Office and to assign the census functions to the new non-departmental public body responsible for statistics will be replicated for the General Register Office for Scotland.

Mr Tom McCabe: The proposal in the Statistics and Registration Service Bill to separate the census and registration functions of the General Register Office relates to England and Wales. No changes will be made to the General Register Office for Scotland, which is already a non-ministerial department.

Statistics

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will issue a public consultation on its proposal to participate in the new statistics arrangements being put in place at UK level and whether this will occur prior to a legislative consent motion being lodged in the Scottish Parliament.

Mr Tom McCabe: A public consultation document will be published around the same time as the Legislative Consent Motion (LCM) is lodged in the Scottish Parliament.

  The consultation paper will include a range of proposals to improve statistical services in Scotland including, but not limited to, proposals that are best carried forward through the UK Statistics and Registration Service Bill. Responses to the consultation will contribute to LCM discussions in Parliament and will shape the non-legislative proposals.

Statistics

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has made cost estimates for the establishment of a non-departmental public body in Scotland to work within the proposed new statistical system for the United Kingdom; whether any budget for such an organisation would be funded in Scotland outwith the spending review, and whether any funding needs resulting from the actions of the UK Government in relation to establishing a non-departmental public body in Scotland relating to the production of statistics will be met by the UK Government.

Mr Tom McCabe: We do not consider that creating a new public body for the production of statistics in Scotland is necessary. Therefore, we have not considered any specific funding or budget issues. We envisage that the UK Government will meet all the costs of the Statistics Board proposed in the Statistics and Registration Service Bill.

Statistics

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether, in proposing to participate in the new statistical arrangements being put in place at UK level, it has any plans to change the position or employment of statisticians currently working in its departments.

Mr Tom McCabe: No. The organisational changes proposed in the Statistics and Registration Service Bill will not affect the employment of Scottish Executive statisticians.

Statistics

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive which statistics, currently produced by the Executive, it expects to be produced in future by statisticians operating within the new non-departmental public body for statistics.

Mr Tom McCabe: No statistics currently produced by the Executive will be transferred to the new non-ministerial department.

Statistics

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether economic statistics, currently produced by it, will in future be produced by the proposed non-departmental public body for statistics.

Mr Tom McCabe: No, economic statistics currently produced by the Executive will not transfer to the new non-ministerial department.

  The work of the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which produces much of the underlying data for Executive statistics on the economy, will transfer to the Statistics Board. So the new body will have a responsibility to supply the Executive with economic statistics data in the same way that the ONS does now. However, this does not mean that economic statistics currently produced by the Executive will transfer to the new body.

Statistics

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether economic statistics, currently produced by it, will fall within the responsibility of the proposed non-departmental public body for statistics.

Mr Tom McCabe: No, economic statistics currently produced by the Executive will not fall within the responsibility of the new non-ministerial department for statistics.

  The work of the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which produces much of the underlying data for Executive statistics on the economy, will transfer to the Statistics Board.

  The new body can comment and give advice on the economic statistics produced by the Executive but it will not be responsible for their production though it will have a responsibility to supply the Executive with economic statistics data in the same way that the ONS does now.

Statistics

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the production of economic statistics by it will be affected by the UK Statistical and Registration Services Bill in any way other than with regard to oversight and guidance.

Mr Tom McCabe: Subject to the passage of the necessary Legislative Consent Motion, the Statistics and Registration Service Bill will give the Statistics Board a role in setting and monitoring the standards of Scottish statistics (including economic statistics). Its independent scrutiny will help to ensure that Scottish statistics are produced to high standards.

  The work of the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which produces much of the underlying data for Executive statistics on the economy, will transfer to the Statistics Board. So the new body will have a responsibility to supply the Executive with economic statistics data in the same way that the ONS does now.

  The Bill’s provisions on the sharing of information between the Statistics Board and other public bodies for statistical purposes may also improve the quality of economic statistics.

Statistics

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether its proposal to participate in the arrangements to be provided for by the UK Statistics and Registration Services Bill includes establishing a specific office in Scotland as a subsidiary of a UK office.

Mr Tom McCabe: No, it is not intended that Scotland’s inclusion in UK Statistics and Registration Service Bill will lead to a specific office in Scotland as a subsidiary of the new UK office.

Statistics

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether its proposal to participate in the arrangements to be provided for by the UK Statistics and Registration Services Bill is predicated on the UK non-departmental public body providing only oversight and advisory functions to Scottish-based statisticians.

Mr Tom McCabe: The UK Statistics and Registration Service Bill will give the new independent body a role in setting and monitoring the standards of Scottish statistics. It will help to demonstrate that Scottish statistics are produced to high standards and subject to independent scrutiny.

  This does not mean that the new body will oversee Scottish Executive statisticians – it can only comment and give advice on the official statistics that they produce.

Statistics

Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether its proposal to participate in the arrangements provided for by the UK Statistics and Registration Services Bill is predicated on all statisticians currently working for the Executive continuing to work on this basis and not for a subsidiary of the UK non-departmental public body in Scotland.

Mr Tom McCabe: Yes, all statisticians currently working for the Executive will continue to work on this basis under the new UK arrangements.

Student Finance

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish the costings on which the Deputy Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning based his statement on 14 September 2006 that the SNP proposals on student funding would cost £1.7 billion ( Official Report , c. 27508).

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will expand on the statement by the Deputy Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning on 14 September 2006 that "The SNP might save £80 million in write-off subsidy" ( Official Report , c. 27527).

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish the costings on which the Deputy Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning based his statement on 14 September 2006 that the SNP proposal to replace the student loans system with a maintenance grant would incur a £150 million cost to "transfer loans into grants and write off the historic debt" ( Official Report , c. 27527).

Nicol Stephen: The Executive has no policy to replace student loans with grants, to write off loan debt, or to abolish the graduate endowment. Therefore, we would not publish detailed costings for these plans.

  The figure of £1.7 billion quoted in this debate was based on the estimated costs of around £150 million to replace loans with grants and around £1.6 billion to write off anticipated student loan liabilities. The total is net of provision of £81 million, which is currently made in the Scottish Executive budget to cover various costs of operating student loans, which would no longer be required.

Student Finance

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish the costings on which the Deputy Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning based his statement on 26 May 2005 that it would cost £180 million to provide grants for living costs support ( Official Report , c. 17256).

Nicol Stephen: The figures provided in the debate on 26 May 2005 were updated for the subsequent debate on 14 September 2006.

  I refer the member to the answer given to the answer to question S2W-28470 on 28 November. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Student Finance

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average indebtedness to the Student Loans Company is of borrowers domiciled in Scotland who graduated or otherwise ceased to borrow in 2005 but who had borrowed for at least four years.

Nicol Stephen: The following table shows the figures for graduates who ceased to borrow in 2005.

  

 
 Product
 Customer Count
 Total Debt
 Average Debt


 Borrowers with Four or More Loans
 Income Contingent Loan
£9,974
£106,594,985.43 
£10,687.29

Student Finance

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-28477 by Nicol Stephen on 6 October 2006, whether the statements in the answer that "Expenditure on student support can be split into two main categories. Expenditure from the Scottish Executive Budget and expenditure from outwith Total Managed Expenditure" and "Treasury has now re-classified student loan advances and repayments as Annual Managed Expenditure (AME) as from 1 April 2006. This brings this net expenditure within the Scottish Executive’s Total Managed Expenditure" mean that student loan advances and repayments should now be regarded as being part of the Executive’s budget.

Nicol Stephen: The Reclassification of Student Net New lending from Outwith Total Managed Expenditure (OTME) to AME has no budgetary effect.

  This reclassification simply improves the transparency of the Treasury’s cash requirements. By virtue of the Public Finance and Accountability (Scotland) Act 2000 the Scottish Executive’s budget for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning has always included the cash requirement to fund Student Net new lending.

  The previous categorisation of student loans as Outside Total Managed Expenditure meant that student loans were shown as part of the Governments overall cash requirement and not specifically pertaining to the total managed expenditure of the Scottish Executive.

Student Finance

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-28477 by Nicol Stephen on 6 October 2006, whether it is confident that the statement "All AME expenditure is met in full by the Treasury" is accurate.

Nicol Stephen: I am confident that this statement is accurate. All AME expenditure is met by the Treasury, providing that the expenditure is in respect of the budget intent, in this case Student Loans

Student Finance

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-28476 by Nicol Stephen on 6 October 2006, how many student loan borrowers domiciled in Scotland and now in repayment status had their payments outweighed by the charges shown as interest on their statements in cash terms in each of the last five years.

Nicol Stephen: The number of student loan borrowers who had ICR full-time loans that entered repayment in April 2004 who had their repayments outweighed by interest in each financial year is:

  2003-04 is 15,981

  2004-05 is 36,312.

  Due to the nature of the repayment under the Income Contingent System it is not possible to provide this information prior to 2003-04.

  Interest is only charged at the rate of inflation, therefore, any repayment made, no matter how small, would always result in a borrower owing less in real terms.

Taxation

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the First Minister’s statement on 16 November 2006 that a reduction in corporation tax in Scotland from 30% to 12.5% would cost £1.4 billion ( Official Report c. 29395), what other data it holds, or is aware of, on the yield in Scotland from (a) corporation tax, (b) income tax, (c) capital gains tax, (d) stamp duty land tax, (e) inheritance tax, (f) petroleum revenue tax and (g) all other taxes.

Mr Tom McCabe: This information can be found in the annual Scottish Executive publication, Government Expenditure and Revenue in Scotland (GERS) . The most recent publication contains data for 2003-04 but the next updated version with 2004-05 data is due to be published in mid December. GERS is available online at:

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/12/12113803/38105.

Taxation

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the First Minister’s statement on 16 November 2006 that a reduction in corporation tax in Scotland from 30% to 12.5% would cost £1.4 billion ( Official Report c. 29395), how, and from which data sources, that figure was calculated.

Mr Tom McCabe: Government Expenditure and Revenues in Scotland 2003-04 estimates receipts from corporation tax in Scotland at £2.4 billion. The £1.4 billion figure results from dividing this by the current rate and multiplying by the proposed rate.

Unemployment

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of people registered unemployed were aged (a) 25 and under, (b) 26 to 35, (c) 36 to 45, (d) 46 to 55 and (e) over 55 in each year since 1990, broken down by parliamentary constituency.

Nicol Stephen: The official source of the number of people registered unemployed is the claimant count i.e. people claiming jobseekers allowance.

  I have placed tables showing the percentage of people registered unemployed by age-band and parliamentary constituency in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 41039). However please note data for parliamentary constituencies are only available from 1996 onwards. Also data are not available for the exact age-bands specified but data have been provided for people aged (a) 16-24 (b) 25-34 (c) 35-44 (d) 45-54 and (e) 55 plus.

University of St. Andrews (Postgraduate Medical Degrees) Act 2002

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) initial set up and (b) annual costs to (i) the Executive, (ii) local authorities, (iii) other public sector organisations or bodies and (iv) other individuals, organisations and bodies of the University of St. Andrews (Postgraduate Medical Degrees) Act 2002 were projected to be in the Financial Memorandum to the bill and what the actual (1) initial set up costs were and (2) annual costs have been in each year since the act came into force, in each category

Nicol Stephen: The Financial Memorandum to the member’s bill is available on the Parliament's website. No costs are associated with the act, except in relation to candidates wishing to study for the relevant postgraduate medical degree and the course provision by the University of Andrews.